Learning to Fear the Lord The ABCs of the Kingdom of God Key Scriptures: Proverbs 1:7; Proverbs 9:10; Deuteronomy 17:18–20; Jeremiah 9:23–24 Message Summary The fear of the Lord is the foundation of all kingdom wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. Just as the ABCs form the foundation of reading and writing, the fear of the Lord forms the foundation of everything we do for God's glory. To fear the Lord is to give Him His rightful place in our lives, recognizing that His wisdom, authority, and understanding are greater than our own. The more we come to know the Lord, the more we reverence Him, love Him, and desire to walk in His ways. True wisdom is not simply accumulating biblical information but developing an intimate relationship with God through Jesus Christ. The more we know Him, the more we learn to love what He loves and delight in what delights Him. Proverbs teaches us to recognize the patterns and consequences of life so that we can walk wisely without having to experience every danger ourselves. From the garden of Eden, we discover two competing approaches to life: God calls us to listen to Him so that we can learn how to live, while Satan tempts us to live independently of God and learn through experience. We don't have to experience everything God warns us against to know that His warnings are true. In Deuteronomy 17, God instructed Israel's kings to keep a personal copy of His Word, read it continually, and learn to fear Him. The purpose was to guard their hearts against pride, ground them in truth, grip them with His instruction, and guide them in righteousness. These same principles benefit every follower of Jesus today. Psalm 81 reveals God's desire